After risking her life in the mortal world, the faerie princess Elora returns home to incite a revolution. Allied with the Bright Queen, Elora rallies her people for a battle aimed at overthrowing her mother, the Dark Queen. While some question their ability to win, Elora senses victory, knowing she has a secret weapon: Taylor, the human boy she loves, and a motley crew of his school friends, each armed with a skill that can turn the tide of the coming battle.

A MORTAL SACRIFICE . . .

But then Elora's supporters in the Dark Court turn on her, believing she has forsaken them in favor of humans. When the Dark Queen kidnaps two of her human friends, Elora must mount a daring rescue mission to free them before her mother offers them up as a sacrifice.

My 5 Favorite Moments from THE LAST FAERIE QUEEN (with excerpts!)

Hey
everybody! I’m here to talk about my five favorite moments from my upcoming YA
fantasy, THE LAST FAERIE QUEEN. I hope you enjoy reading about them as much as
I enjoyed writing them!!

1. The
mortals run wild in the Court of the Bright Faeries…

Early on
in the story, the mortals are given faerie fruit, which lifts the glamour
covering the Seelie Court. I had such a good time watching them explore the faerie
world:

There
were things living in the dirt,
but it wasn’t that simple. The entire ground was breathing, in and out; I could
feel it. I pressed my hand against the dirt—something I’d done at my brother’s
grave a hundred times—and the ground pushed back, greeting me. To my left, on
the edge of the clearing, Kylie was reaching up and checking which leaf was a
leaf and which was a faerie. Half the leaves touched by her fingers curled back
to reveal some green-winged thing, and others scurried away like animals. Rocks
rose on little legs and hobbled past us. The wind sang in our ears, beckoning
us the way sirens beckoned men into the ocean.

I
wanted to feel the ocean then, to feel waves pouring over me, showing me all
the creatures that lived underneath. But the light felt a lot like water, like
something warm and fluid moving over me. All the worries I’d carried for most
of my life—my father’s disappointment in me, the loss of my brother, my
never-ending quest to gain love from Elora, from anyone—just slipped off of me,
and I felt clean. Unburdened.

2. Elora
and Taylor reunite…

From the
minute Taylor arrives in the Seelie Court, the bright faeries conspire to keep him
away from Elora. They want Taylor all to themselves, and they can’t stand the
thought of him loving the Princess of the Dark Faeries. But in spite of it all,
the two manage to sneak away and have their moment:

Her
lips parted to let me in. Her breath was hot, and so was mine. I could feel
heat rising between us. Here, between our lips, and lower. Electricity shot
through our entire bodies, reaching out to meet in the middle. Tangling in the
air.

But
no, there shouldn’t be any space between us. I wove my fingers into her hair,
grasping, pulling her closer to me.She
didn’t pull away. She kissed me harder. I could hear her breathing. She was
making these sweet little sounds that were halfway between a sigh and a moan,
and my legs got shaky.

3. The
mortals enter the Dark Court…

In order
to sneak up to the Dark Palace, and overthrow the Unseelie Queen, the mortals
must first get past Elora’s followers. But those followers are the servants of
the Unseelie Court and they don’t exactly have a high opinion of humans…

When
we reached the border, we were stopped by a host of wicked-looking things.
There was a faerie in rusting armor with long, silvery hair and a lady
scarecrow that could give a guy nightmares for centuries. There was a giantess
with an eerie rabbit’s head, and a faerie with a body like a frog sitting on
her shoulder. A lady in a moth-eaten dress sneered down at us, her skin scarred
and pockmarked beneath the red velvet.

But
more horrifying than anything was the woman whose head was birthing ravens. Her entire body was
black, her dress was black, her gloves were black. Even her umbrella was black.
Or maybe it was a parasol—you know, that thing Victorian ladies used to keep
the sun off their pasty skin. The air around her was inky black, like her body
was bleeding into the night, and birds peeled away from her face, disappearing
into the sky. Birds that were half feather and half smoke. Their eyes were a
glowing red, and even after they were gone I could still see them.

4. The
Queen of the Dark Faeries gives Taylor a scare…

After
Elora and the mortals enter the Dark Palace, Taylor has an unfortunate run-in
with the Unseelie Queen. And the Queen, whose power lies in her ability to
intuit one’s darkest fears, uses those fears against him:

The
Dark Lady snorted, and I caught a flash of her true nature. Beneath the mask of
marble white skin and ruby lips, I saw the face of a monster. Teeth so long and
sharp they jutted all the way down her chin, and up through her cheeks. Eye sockets that were empty of eyes, but
filled with the dark abyss of space. Of eternity. Blood dripped down her chin,
but it couldn’t have been mortal blood because of the iron.God, had she been eating her own kind?

She
caught me staring and licked her lips.

5. Elora lets down her walls…

All her life, Elora has never
been able to trust anyone. Her mother is the Queen of the Dark Faeries, and her
brother made it his mission in life to destroy her. But the night before the
battle with the Dark Court, Elora and Taylor slip away one last time, and she finally
allows herself to trust him:

The
universe exploded in a world of colors. I felt the way it must feel to exist
inside the Aurora Borealis, with all those colors pouring down. The light, the
beauty. The wonder. It rushed over me and I crashed into it, a girl made of
storms. Of waves. He was bringing me to life with his kisses, with that soft
touch. We were two beings, and we were more.

We
were the entire universe.

I
gasped, and a thrill went through me. All around us, the air was moving, inky
black from the darkness I’d created, but also permeated by cool, glittering
light. Light coming off of him,
I realized, and shivered in the air. Now the colors were mingling, black
bleeding into purple, and gold fading into white. There were violets and blues,
dancing the way that we were dancing. Entangled, but not close enough. Those
colors were blending, but they weren’t becoming one, and for the first time, I
wanted them to. Wanted to stop being Elora the singular entity, and become a
part of the world. I’d still be myself when it was all over, still be able to
stand on my own. But there was strength in collective power. Strength in
trusting another.

That’s about it! So hard to choose, but those are five of
my favorite scenes from THE LAST FAERIE QUEEN. Of course, I also love the ending,
when a big secret is revealed, but I won’t spoil that for you. Thanks so much
for reading!!!

Chelsea Pitcher is a karaoke-singing,
ocean-worshipping Oregonian with a penchant for wicked faerie tales. She began
gobbling up stories as soon as she could read, and especially enjoys delving
into the darker places to see if she can draw out some light. She is the author
of THE S-WORD (Simon and Schuster), THE LAST CHANGELING (Flux), and THE LAST
FAERIE QUEEN (Flux 2015).

Giveaway Details:

2 winners
will receive a signed finished copy of THE LAST FAERIE QUEEN, US/Canada Only.